Okay, this needs a little explanation. I'm in debate, and one of the debate events is called original oratory. It's pretty self-explanatory; each competitor writes his or her own 8-10 minute speech and presents it a tournament. The topics are the competitor's choice, and the speech can be to present a problem or just an informative speech. This is my oratory. I've been considering posting it for a while, and I decided that if I was, I'd better do it before debate is over (Three weeks) Enjoy!

One of Those Teachers

We're surrounded. They are everywhere, invading our lives. In fact, I am one of them. Yes, I am talking about teachers. Everyone has teachers in their lives. Everyone also has one of those teachers. You know, a person who inspires and challenges their students. Someone who you remember all your life. But, what makes someone "one of those teachers"? What makes them so different from the rest? Well, someone who is one of those teachers is an educator who will show, listen and talk to their students. However, before we look at those three things, we must first look at the art of teaching.

As I stated earlier, teachers are everywhere. Even though school comes to mind first, a teacher could simply be a parent, coach, boss, sibling, orator, pastor, counselor, the list goes on. It doesn't take much to be a teacher; all it requires is a willingness to share information. When that willingness is met with the need or want of the student to learn, education happens. Not only are we surrounded by teachers on a daily basis, but we are teachers on a daily basis. Yes, many of us lack a degree or training to do so, but we are teachers when we show younger sibling learn how to tie their shoe or when we train a new co-worker. In fact, during an average day, every person switches through the roles of teacher and student many a time. Now, what makes some of our numerous teachers different from the others? First off, it is because they show.

Every English teacher has told their students at some point to 'show, not tell'. When used in that context, the teacher is asking the student to write or create a journey for the reader instead of just simply telling them what the journey was. However, this phrase applies to teaching as well; a good teacher will show their students lessons, instead of just tell them information. Now, why would a teacher need to do this, when the latter is obviously easier? According to Group Learning Materials, children remember less than 10% of what they hear, versus 90% of what they do. When students are being told information, all they can do is sit there and listen and memorize the information. But when students are being shown the information they can feel active in the learning because the teacher is taking them on that journey. This gives them a feeling of responsibility and prompts them to learn or retain more information. In some cases, such as a math class, this concept is easily seen. A teacher can guide students through an equation step by step. Good teachers demonstrate their lessons through examples, real life relations, or explaining why something happened. To further demonstrate this difference of showing and telling, let's look at when you're out fishing for the first time and you're learning how to cast. Now, I can tell you how to do it; hold down the button, bring back your rod, swing it forward, release the button, and let the line fly. Easy, right? Or, better yet, I could show you how to hold down the button, bring your rod back, swing it forward, release the button as you're swinging, and let your line fly. A Chinese proverb reminds us that if you give a man a fish, you feed him for a day. Teach him how to fish, and you feed him for a lifetime. The same goes for teaching. Tell someone something, and they will forget. Show them, and they will understand for a lifetime.

I'd like to tell you a story about a boy named Jason. Jason came from the average family of 2.3 kids with a dog behind a white picket fence. Jason's family achieved very highly socially and academically, while Jason struggled in both. In fact, Jason struggled with his grades, suffered from Attention Deficit Disorder, and often caused trouble in school. In high school, however, things began to change; Jason's grades went up, and he stayed out of trouble. As all parents would, his questioned the cause and were told by the school principal that it had to do with the new school counselor. When they asked Jason why she was so different, Jason excitedly responded, "She does more than hear. She listens!" This story illustrates another quality that unforgettable teachers; they can listen rather than hear. Now those two may seem alike, but there is a difference. If you hear something, you recognize the sound, you acknowledge it was there. But when you're listening to something, you're considering that sound, you're thinking about it. When you hear something, it goes in one ear and right on out the other. But when you are listening, it goes in one ear and stays in the brain. Now, why would a teacher need to listen to the students? After all, a teacher is in charge of the classroom. Well, someone who is 'one of those teachers' knows that listening to the students tells the students a powerful message, a message that they are worthy of being respected. As an example, a recent issue at my high school regarded the use of facebook. My high school receives funds from the state so that every student has a laptop, and Facebook, a social networking site, is blocked during school hours. However, the issue became a big deal when facebook was blocked at home as well. Two senior girls took their complaints to the school's computer technician who referred them to the superintendent. Instead of telling them that "Hey, life's tough and move on," the superintendent listened to their side of the story and decided that Facebook could be unblocked at home and at school, as a privilege. However, as all privileges come, there would need to be some restrictions, but he gave the power of creating those restrictions to those two senior girls. When we the students found out about this, we were amazed that someone of that authority considered what we had to say, especially when he didn't even have to. Listening creates a trusting bond between the teacher and the students. From these examples, it's clear that listening has a profound impact on learning.

The final major aspect of all unforgettable teachers is their ability to talk, rather than down. Once again, the difference isn't necessarily large. Talking to somebody is talking to them as a peer or equal whereas talking down to someone is talking to them in a more condescending tone. This difference can be seen in both language and body language. When 30-year-old talks to an eight- year-old child, obviously the 30 year old won't use the vocabulary they use with their friends. If they did, the eight-year-old wouldn't understand what they're talking about, and they would probably bring home a few new words to Mom and Dad. The same goes for teaching. If the vocabulary of the teacher is too complex, then the students won't be able to understand what's being taught, and they can't learn. Likewise, if the vocabulary is too simple, the students will feel patronized, and they won't want to learn. Learning can only happen if there is a common language between teacher and student. However, even if the language matches between the two, if the teacher fails to communicate positively, the lesson is still lost. According to the textbook Communication: Speech Matters, about 75% of communication is nonverbal. If a teacher's body language gives off the message 'I'm speaking at your level, but I'm smarter and better than you', students will pick up on it. This message is downright rude and causes close up and ignore the educator. They say 'No', no to listening, no to doing quality work, and eventually, no to learning. But, when a teacher gives the message 'I'm here to work with you', the situation is a positive one because students will be receptive to the instructor. A good example of an educator whose ability to talk to people made her famous is Princess Diana. Coincidentally enough, Diana herself was a kindergarten teacher before becoming royalty, but her teaching abilities stretched into the world instead of just the classroom. Dubbed "the People's Princess", Diana was famous for going out and talking to people around the world without making them feel that she was above them. As the 1998 Time article "The Saddest Fairytale" states, "Diana had a 'common touch' that allowed her to connect." Diana used this ability to educate others about AIDS, and she supported over 100 different charities in her lifetime. When instructors and students use a common language, a mutual feeling of respect is built, and education can happen.

We are surrounded by teachers. Some stand out, though, because they have mastered the art of teaching. They have honed their abilities to demonstrate lessons to students, consider thoughts and opinions of the students, and speak in an effective manner. Think of the teachers you have had. Do any of them possess these qualities? Then you have been lucky enough to have had "one of those teachers".

FIN

So, yeah, It's long, but I speak fast. Thanks for reading!

In response to the question of who was his greatest enemy, the Criminal Minds character Jason Gideon replied,

"It's not a who. It's a what. Ignorance."

Actor Shemar Moore, SSA Derek Morgan on the show Criminal Minds, was found driving drunk in early June. Wait, didn't you know? Oh yeah, it was all over the net! Oh yeah, I found it on TMZ, IMDb, TV guide, USA today, MSNBC, etc. Oh, wait. Didn't I forget something? Where are the Criminal Minds fan sites? Why didn't I list them?

In this age of the internet, one would think that something like a star getting into legal trouble would immediately appear on the numerous fan sites. However, in this incident, you would have been stretching your luck. In fact, very few of the fan sites acknowledged that it happened. Some did; others refused to talk about it. Why? The most common answer: "This is part of his private life. We don't need to discuss it."

Do they not realize how bogus that answer is? I do believe that if something does not affect the show, then it is part of the private life of the actor/actress. I believe that then we do not need to discuss it. But that answer is coming from fan sites that have gone as far as discussing how the girlfriend of one of the other male co-stars looks. Isn't that private? The girlfriend doesn't affect the show; she's not Yoko Ono. Why do we need to discuss how she looks? I consider it far more appropriate to discuss something that could actually affect the show, as that is what I am a fan of.

Now, as I stated earlier, I believe that if it does not affect the show, it is private. In California, it is not uncommon for people convicted of DUI to do jail time. In fact, Shemar was supposedly facing six months. His court date, June 26. Shooting for season 3 of Criminal Minds begins July 9. Do the math. It affects Criminal Minds all of a sudden, so, this bothered me. Why wouldn't the webmasters of the fan sites tell the visitors that this happened? People who came forward and said something were almost reprimanded for doing so. Why were we so afraid to say that one of our stars screwed up?

You may be wondering what this has to with gods and actors.This incident with Shemar Moore is a prime example of a shiftthat has happened in pop culture today. Now, if we love a star, we distort who they are and what they're capable of. Simply put, we deify them. We mention the good qualities, but just let it slip about their bad qualities. It's like we say,

'My favorite star screwed up? What, no, of course not! They couldn't have! But, hey, if I don't say anything, it never happened, right?'

Where does that sort of logic come from? Why should we expect these people to be better than us? We are only setting our selves up for disappointment. As a defense mechanism, we pretend it never happened. Refer back to the quote. Do we realize how destructive it is to ignore what happened? As scary as it may seem, you may have picked an idol that is up to no good.Ignorance leads to disappointment because in today's world, you can only keep it up so long.

Now, the biggest question of all arrives; how do we correct this? It's quite simple. If you love a star, show, movie, whatever, keep yourself educated about what happens with them. Don't be nosy, but don't be oblivious.Knowledge is power, but going to far into the person's life is rude and disrespectful.Ignorance might be bliss, but asI have already stated, it leads to disappointment.So, we find a balance, as we must do with many aspects of our lives.

Don't get me wrong, I am not trying to say that Shemar Moore is a bad person. He is an amazing actor who has shown absolutely fantastic character. However, driving drunk is a stupid, selfish move. Lucky was he that no one was hurt, no one was killed, and that now he got out of prison. I am very disappointed in Shemar Moore, and I'm truly sad that it happened. But what's really sad is that in the end I became more disappointed in the fans' reactions to this.